Down and dirty fun on wheels

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When Pippi meets Norbert, she's not exactly friendly. In fact, she's inclined to complain a bit about her life.

"Do you know how it feels to stand there," she asks, "and collect dollar bill after dollar bill?"

As a matter of fact, Norbert knows all too well.

He's a collector at a toll booth, while Pippi is a stripper. Who would have thought they have so much in common? We mean, dollar bills and all.

They also share the down-and-dirty humor of "The Great American Trailer Park Musical," along with Norbert's wife, Jeannie, whose agoraphobia makes it difficult to venture out of her trailer for even a few minutes; Pippi's old boyfriend, Duke, who aims to get his woman back; and a Greek chorus of Jeannie's friends Betty, Linoleum and Pickles.

"Her real name is Donna, but they call her &#8216;Pickles' because she always thinks she's pregnant," said Dana Feigenblatt, who is directing the show for the Music Box Dinner Playhouse in Swoyersville.

By the way, how did Linoleum get her name? Because her mother gave birth on the kitchen floor, of course.

In addition to her directing duties, Feigenblatt is reprising her role as Jeannie and considers one of the play's funniest moments to be that character's song "about how her marriage is in the toilet. Her three neighbors do back-up with toilet-brush choreography."

The other showstopper is Duke's appearance at the beginning of the second act. "He's singing about road kill," Feigenblatt said, "and sniffing a Magic Marker to relax."

The premise of the musical, which depicts residents of the fictional Armadillo Acres as if they were prime fodder for a tacky talk show, doesn't seem to hurt anyone's feelings, the director said.

"We had people come up to us (after a previous show) and say they live in a trailer park and wish it was more like this one because it's so much fun."

if you go

What: &#8216;The Great American Trailer Park Musical'

When: 8 tonight and Saturday; 3 p.m. Sunday

Dinner: Served 90 minutes before show time

Where: Music Box Dinner Playhouse, 196 Hughes St., Swoyersville

More info: 283-2195

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